Long Shot
by pmbb
Summary: When there's a sniper wreaking havoc, there's only one SRU officer who can save the day, but the question is can he do it? CH 8 is up!
1. Chapter 1

**Just something that's been sitting in my computer for a while. Takes place after the events of _While You Were Gone_. **

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_Winsor Plaza_

"Troy, what's going on?" Commander Holleran asked the sergeant of Team Two as he exited one of the SRU's standard issue SUVs.

Troy looked at his boss and shook his head. "Sniper on the 32nd floor of the Winsor Tower. He's barricaded himself inside one of the offices and rigged the door with what appears to be C4. I've got Andrew as Sierra One, but due to the building's architectural design and the position of the subject, Andrew can't get a good shot."

Holleran sighed and surveyed the area. He immediately saw what Andrew and Troy were referring too; thick, concrete beams added during a recent retrofitting encased the building. After taking a quick look at the surrounding buildings, Holleran looked back at his sergeant. "Any ideas?"

Troy sighed. "No sir. I've had Andrew try to get a good vantage point from several of the surrounding buildings, but no luck. Whoever that guy is up there-" Troy paused, looking up at the building where their suspect currently was, then back at Holleran "he's good sir, and I have no doubt that a lot of planning went into him picking that spot. I think the only way we're going to get a decent Sierra shot on this guy is if we find a building tall enough to get a good angle over the beams."

"I think you're right. Where's the nearest building that's close to the height of this one?"

Troy gestured to the map that was lying open on the hood of the command truck. "According to our map, about 2 ½ kilometers away."

Holleran let out a slow whistle. "There's not anything closer?"

"'Fraid not sir."

"Let's say that was our last option. Could Andrew make that shot?"

Troy sighed and took his earpiece out. "Honestly? No. Andrew's good, but not that good. I mean that shot would be close to 2500 meters away _AND_ into the wind. I don't know of anyone who could make that shot. Do you?"

"Not exactly; I know someone who very well could make this shot. He's never made a shot quite this long before, but if anyone can do it, it'll definitely be him." Commander Holleran answered.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get him here! Who is it?" Troy asked, a hopeful tone creeping into his once defeated voice.

"Sam Braddock."

Troy looked at his boss with a shocked expression on his face. Everyone in the SRU knew about what had happened to Sam while he was overseas, and although he had been cleared for duty and back at work for several weeks now, Greg, Ed and the rest of Team One were keeping a very close eye on him. "Are you sure that's a good idea sir? I mean, I know Sam's been cleared for duty and back at work for a while now, but do you think he's ready for this? I know Greg's been keeping him out of the sierra position since he's been back and this isn't the average run-of-the-mill shot that SRU members make…what if taking this shot does more harm than good?"

Holleran sighed. He knew Troy was right, Greg and Ed had made sure that Sam had steered clear of the sierra position since returning to Team One, but he also knew that they had a sniper in a practically untouchable position firing on unsuspecting and unprepared citizens that needed to be taken care of. If anyone had a chance at getting this guy, it was Sam, and Holleran knew that. "I understand your concern, but I don't think we have another choice. I'll call in Team One for backup; they'll be there for him."

"We all will." Troy added with conviction.

Commander Holleran smiled slightly at the comradery between the teams and pulled out his phone to call HQ.

After calling HQ to request Team One's assistance, and receiving an unfortunate update from Winnie, Commander Holleran sighed, then pocketed his phone and returned to where Troy waited. Troy, immediately noticing the concerned look Holleran was trying to mask, became very concerned himself. "What's wrong?"

"Team One is on their way; but Winnie just informed me that Sam apparently had a flashback this morning."

"Is he alright?" Troy asked, alarmed. He had heard from Greg at the Sergeants meeting that Sam was still being tormented by his time overseas through flashbacks, nightmares and sleepless nights.

"He will be. He snapped out of it quickly, thankfully, but it really shook his team up." Holleran said with a saddened sigh. He had a lot of respect for Sam and he hated that he was having to go through this.

"Do you think he's going to be able to do this? I was questioning it before, but after this..." Troy asked, concerned for many reasons.

Holleran sighed. "I don't know. Sam's a soldier and has been trained as one since birth; he'll do the task assigned to him, regardless of the risks. The aftermath of it all, however, could go one of two ways; Sam could snap back to the way he was before he was sent back, back to the confident, fun-loving, badass that he was before all of this happened, or he could believe that he's back in the desert, experiencing all that hell once again, and his flashbacks and nightmares could increase." Holleran sighed again and took his hat off to rub his head. "It's a big risk with a heavy price to pay if things go south, but if I know Sam as well as I think I do, he'll agree, no matter the risks."

Troy nodded once, still unsure about everything. "Greg and Ed are going to hate this."

Commander Holleran gave a humorless chuckle. "I know. I'm not happy about it either, but something needs to be done; we need to get this guy."

Troy nodded, not satisfied with the plan. Understanding that this was the only thing they could do hit as the gunman continued to fire on the police and SRU officers in the plaza below.

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 **Let me know what you think?! Stay tuned for the next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for the love on the story so far! Here's the next chapter!**

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 _SRU HQ_

Greg stood at the entrance to the gym watching his team. Team One still had a few hours before their shift started but, as usual, they were all in the gym for their pre-shift workout. Greg paid special attention to Sam, watching him with a careful eye. Sam had been back on active duty for a month now and even though he somehow passed both his physical and mandatory psych eval, he wasn't the same person he was before he went on his last tour. He was getting better but his blue eyes had lost their sparkle and on some days, his smile was usually forced.

Things were going as well as they could go, until Spike dropped one of the dumbbells he was using and the resulting loud bang echoed throughout the gym. Every member of Team One, Spike included, jumped at the noise but shook it off with a laugh and went back to working out, everyone but Sam. Sam stood frozen by one of the weight benches, his eyes blank and unfocused, his breathing uneasy. As his breathing became ragged Ed, who was the closest one to him, began to notice that something wasn't right. "Samo, you OK?" When Sam didn't acknowledge him, he asked again. "Sam?"

Sam didn't respond to Ed, even when concern laced his words. He didn't even move; he just stood by the weight bench, staring into space. At the lack of response to Ed's questions, the rest of Team One turned their attention to their silent teammate. What they saw when they looked at Sam shocked them; his eyes and face were blank and he had started to shake and beads of sweat popped up all over his body. Alarmed, they all abandoned their various workout equipment and rushed over to him. As Jules moves forward to go to him Ed stops her, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her back. She looks at him with an expression that is a mix of confusion and anger. "What are you doing?!"

"Jules, I think he's having a flashback."

All anger flooded out of Jules as the truth and recognition of Ed's words hit her. Wordy, Spike and Greg, who had joined the rest of the team in the gym after Ed's one-sided conversation with Sam, realized what was going on as well and all of their shoulders slumped. This was not the first flashback Sam had had since returning to work, but each one seemed to renew the anger the members of Team One felt towards General Braddock and the hideous things Sam experienced overseas. With Sam being ex-Special Forces and fresh off a tour that ended horribly, the members of Team One knew the flashbacks would be bad and Sam, if approached while in the throes of one, would undoubtedly react badly as well. The members of Team One had no other choice than to sit back and watch as their teammate—their brother—relive the hell he went through only months ago.

As Sam's shaking began to lessen Ed took a tentative step forward. "Sam?" Sam's shaking subsided even more and his eyes began to clear up, becoming more focused—a sign that his flashback was coming to an end. Ed took another step forward and tried to get his attention once again. "Sam, you with me buddy?"

It took a couple of minutes of waiting and gentle prompting from Ed but soon, Sam was back to the present and staring his teammates in the face. He took in their anxious faces and instantly knew what had happened. Sam gave a small sigh and sat down on the weight bench beside him and put his head in his hands. "It happened again, didn't it?"

After sharing a quick look with the rest of the team, Ed and the team moved over to the weight bench. Ed bent down, bringing himself to eye level with Sam. "Sam, look at me."

Sam sighed and took his head out of his hands and looked at his teammates surrounding him. The look of pain and exhaustion on his face tugged on the heartstrings of everyone in the room. Sam looked at Ed with weary eyes.

"Listen to me, you have nothing to be ashamed of, OK? What you went through over there….." Ed was cut off by Sam abruptly getting off the weight bench.

Sam started pacing the room, obviously agitated. "That's just it though, I should be ashamed! I've been on three tours; I've seen, done and experienced things that should only happen in horror movies and nightmares, but I've always been able to handle it and I should be able to handle this!" Sam continued to pace around the gym until he got to the wall and hit it with such force it's miraculous neither his hand nor the wall broke. "This wasn't even the first time I was tortured…" he added more quietly.

Shocked silent by that piece of information, the members of Team One looked at each other, unsure of what to do or say. Wordy stepped forward, deciding it was his turn to try and talk to Sam. "Sam, you've been raised to be this badass, all business soldier since you could walk. You've seen more hurt and more death at your age than some people see in a lifetime. You push things away and shove things so deep down inside just to keep from showing emotions because you've been told your whole life that soldiers shouldn't show emotions, but Sam, you're not a soldier anymore. Eventually, all of those built up feelings are going to come out, but look around you, you're home now. You're safe. I won't tell you that bad things won't happen anymore, but you won't be alone. We're all here for you, OK? Let us help you."

Sam looked around at his teammates for several seconds before finally bringing his attention back to Wordy. Sam gave a quick nod, accepting what Wordy said as the truth. At Sam's nod, the change in the atmosphere in the gym was tangible and each of the members of Team One stepped forward to hug Sam, silently showing their love and support. As the hugs wrapped up and everyone returned to their individual workouts, Winnie entered the gym with news of a phone call for Greg. Greg left the room and returned a few minutes later. "Gear up! Holleran needs us to assist Team Two on their hot call. Let's go!"

Ed, Wordy, Spike, Jules and Sam all abandoned their weights and equipment and ran to their respective locker rooms. Greg followed behind, at a slower pace, and observed his team. He knew the gist of the situation they would be going into, thanks to the phone call with Holleran, and he himself questioned whether or not Sam would be able to handle this. However, Greg knew his team and he knew his sniper and he knew that whatever happened on this call, they would be able to handle it together.

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 **Hope you enjoyed! Let me know what you thought!**

 **Next chapter should be up within a week! *fingers crossed***


	3. Chapter 3

**SO sorry it took so long to get this up! I started back at college this past week and 4 days into the new semester and I'm already stressed about what's to come. Anyways, here's the next chapter! It's shorter than the past few because, for some reason, this one was just really hard to write. I hope you enjoy.**

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 _En route to Winsor Plaza_

The drive to Winsor Plaza was an interesting one for all members of Team One. In the first SUV, occupied by Greg, Ed and Wordy, details of the hot call were shared and ideas on different tactical plans were thrown around. Jules and Spike, who were in the second SUV with Sam, gave their input as well and soon they had a plan set up and ready to be put into motion. Greg, concerned by the lack of tactical input from Sam, turned his mic off and signaled for Ed and Wordy to do the same. Once disconnected from the rest of the team, Ed and Wordy looked at Greg expectantly. "What's up Greg?" Ed asked, taking off his aviators to look at his boss.

"Did anyone else notice that Sam was silent during the tact planning?" Greg asked, casting a sideways glance at Ed in the passenger seat and Wordy in the rearview mirror. He watched their faces change as the realization hit them.

"You're right," Wordy said, leaning forward to place himself in between the front seats. "Sam didn't say anything. He loves tact planning and he didn't speak once, not even to argue with Ed or throw in his own suggestions."

Greg nodded and looked over at Ed who seemed to be deep in thought. "Eddy? What do you think?"

"I think there's a reason we haven't had him in a Sierra position since he's been back…" Ed sighed, looking over at Greg and Wordy. "Every time I think he's getting back to the old Sam, he has another flashback and things go back to the way they were when he first stepped off that plane."

"I know what you mean," Wordy added from the backseat.

Greg nodded in agreement. "I understand, but in relation to this call and everything that happened this morning, do you think Sam can handle this?"

"Honestly? I'm not sure. He's passed all of his evaluations and his requalification, and physically he's in tip-top shape so he knows what he's doing and can still do it as well as he always has, but mentally and emotionally—that's an entirely different ballgame. This could be a turning point for Sam or it could be the thing that completely pushes him over the edge."

"Well, for all our sakes, I hope it's the first one; I don't think this team can handle losing him again." Wordy added as he leaned back in his seat. Greg and Ed both nodded in agreement and the rest of the ride was spent in silence as each man contemplated the team's future.

The atmosphere in the second SUV, where Spike, Jules and Sam were was a complete 180 from the first SUV, on the surface at least. Spike and Jules were arguing about last night's hockey game and whether or not the refs cheated the Maple Leafs out of a win. Sam would give the occasional input or a small laugh at Spike's animated arguments but he spent the majority of the ride staring out the window. Whenever Sam would go quiet, Spike and Jules would share a concerned look with each other, saddened by what their teammate and loved one was going through. The memories of his flashback played through their heads and it hurt them to know that Sam was still being tormented by his time overseas.

Jules, having had many "mic off" conversations with Sarge, knew that the silence that filled their comms meant that Greg, Ed and Wordy were having a serious conversation in the other SUV, one that most likely involved Sam. Her heart ached for the man she loved and she only hoped that when Sam agreed to let the team help him this morning he meant it. She wanted _her_ Sam back, not the shell of a man that sat in the seat beside her, and she would do whatever it took to get him back.

Spike had some of the same thoughts as Jules; he had already lost one of his best friends, he would be damned if he lost another. Sam had been through hell, and he along with the rest of the team would make sure that they got their Sam back.

The rest of the ride to Winsor Plaza found 6 SRU officers all lost in their thoughts and eventually, as they drew near to their destination, Greg turned the mics back on and prepped his team for the upcoming call and whatever may come with it.

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 **Hope you enjoyed!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Here's the next chapter! It would've been up earlier because apparently, my body thinks it doesn't need sleep, but the site was being stupid and not letting me log in so...  
BTW, Troy's supposed to sound annoyed in this chapter (with the situation, not other SRU members) so I hope that comes across OK.**

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 _Winsor Plaza_

When Troy and Commander Holleran saw Team One's SUVs pull up to the scene they both breathed a sigh of relief, for they could not have arrived at a better time. Their sniper suspect had been firing at any moving thing for the last 10 minutes and their patience was wearing thin. Escorted by several shield-bearing members of Team Two, all six members of Team One made it to the safety of the command truck where they were thankfully shielded from the sniper's view. Greg, immediately recognizing that the suspect was far more hostile than he originally believed, got straight to business. "Commander, Troy, what do we have?"

"Other than a trigger happy suspect with a sniper rifle?" Troy asked with an annoyed scoff. "He's barricaded himself on the 32nd floor and he's not talking. The office he's in appears to be rigged with C4, so there's no way to get to him that way without blowing something up. I put Andrew as Sierra One, but thanks to the suspect's position and the genius architect who thought adding concrete beams on the outside of the building was a good idea, he can't get a good shot..."

The members of Team One looked at the building and saw what Troy was talking about; thick, perpendicular concrete pillars jutted out from the sides of the building, conveniently giving their suspect the perfect, almost untouchable position. "You're right," Ed said as he surveyed the building some more. "It's going to be hard to get a good angle on the guy."

Troy nodded. "I know. I had Andrew go around to different buildings, but he can't find a good vantage spot."

"Because of the suspect's position and the building's design, we think the only way to get a decent shot on this guy is to find a building tall enough to give the Sierra a good angle over the beams." Commander Holleran added. "That's where you guys come in. The closest building that's around the same height as this one is about 2 1/2 kilometers away."

Shock and surprise was evident on the face of every member of Team One.

"2 1/2 kilometers?!" Spike exclaimed.

"Are you sure there's not anything closer?" Greg asked. He was starting to get a bad feeling about why Holleran called them out to assist; he knew his boss already had a plan in mind, and he was almost sure that he wouldn't like it.

"Nope. We already checked before we called you guys out here." Troy said.

"Andrew is good, but he's not good enough to make a shot like this. That's why your team was called in Greg," Holleran announced. "You have three of the best snipers on the force. Surely _one_ of them can make this shot."

Greg narrowed his eyes. He knew as well as Holleran that Sam was the only person who could possibly make this shot. Sure Ed and Jules were great, but Sam had them beat in long distance marksmanship by a long shot. Greg sighed and turned to his team. "Jules, think you can make that shot?"

Jules shook her head. "No."

Greg looked at Ed. "Ed, what about you? Do you think you could make the shot?"

Ed sighed. "Honestly? I don't know. We're looking at what, 2000 to 2500 meters away? AND into the wind? I've made some pretty long shots in my time, but none of them were even close to this."

All of Team One plus Commander Holleran and Troy turned to face Sam, who had been completely silent since arriving at the scene. Commander Holleran took a step towards him. "Braddock."

Sam looked at his boss. "Sir?"

"Have you ever attempted a shot like this before?"

"Yes sir," Sam answered with a sinking feeling. He had picked up on Holleran's plan the minute he explained why he called in Team One and he knew that Sarge had too. Asking Ed and Jules was all just a formality, an attempt to soften the blow that he would be the one having to take this shot.

"What's the longest shot you've ever made and what were the conditions like? The environment?"

"2000 meters on this last tour. No wind, lots of people, confirmed hit." Sam said softly.

"All right Sam, you're our best shot at getting this guy. Grab your gear." The urgency and tone in Holleran's voice left no room for arguments. Sam gave a nod, then turned around and went to the truck to retrieve his rifle. The members of Team One watched him leave then angrily turned back to face Commander Holleran, but before they could say anything, he stopped them. "I know you're all mad, but we need to end this and soon, before this guy does anymore damage."

"And what about the _damage_ this is going to do to Sam?!" Ed growled angrily. He moved forward to get face to face with Holleran. "He went through hell overseas and he hasn't been the same since he's been back! He hasn't even taken a single Sierra shot since rejoining the team AND he had a flashback this morning! You know all of this and yet, you're still making him do this."

As Ed was speaking, he inched closer and closer to Holleran and finally Greg and Wordy each had to grab one of his arms and pull him back. Holleran stood up straighter and looked at his top TL and the rest of Team One. "Sam is a soldier, through and through; he knows it, I know it and you all know it. If he's given an order, he follows it, regardless of whatever's going on. He's been trained to put all feelings aside and do what needs to be done. Maybe, just maybe, this might be the thing that snaps him back to the old Sam."

"And what if it doesn't?"

Holleran opens his mouth to speak, but before he can answer Sam returned to the group with his rifle bag strung over his shoulder. He had a look of determination on his face but his eyes still showed uncertainty. Commander Holleran turned to look at him. "You ready Sam?"

Sam gave a sharp nod. "One condition though, I take someone to be my second. The last time I had to make a shot like this I was alone...and we all know how that ended..."

Holleran nodded his understanding. "All right, Wordsworth, go with Sam."

Wordy, although slightly confused about why Holleran picked him, nodded and went to stand by Sam. Sam nodded to Wordy then looked back at Holleran. Holleran gave them both a nod. "Get going; you're heading to JND Tower. Radio in when you get there and get set up."

Sam and Wordy gave a nod then turned and climbed into one of the two SUVs Team One came in. They drove off, leaving the remaining members of Team One, Troy, and Commander Holleran watching and hoping that everything Holleran said was true, hoping that Sam would be OK.

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 **Hope you enjoyed! Next chapter will be up next week!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Here's the next chapter! I hope you enjoy.**

 **Sorry it's up late but sometimes life happens, and when you're a college student with sleeping problems, life is hard.**

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 _Winsor Plaza_

The remaining members of Team One, along with Commander Holleran and Troy, watched as the SUV carrying Sam and Wordy drove off. Once the SUV was out of sight, Greg turned around and looked at Holleran. "Wordy was an interesting choice." Ed, Spike and Jules, all curious to know Holleran's reasoning, turned to face him.

Holleran locked eyes with Greg after giving the others a quick glance. "Sam needs a cool head. He needs a calming presence, someone he's not going to think he has to impress; not another sniper or his team leader."

Greg looked at the remaining members of his team. Noting that the three of them accepted Holleran's reasoning but were not particularly happy about it, he gave a quick nod to Holleran. It was at that moment that Team Two's tech guy Sean popped out of the command truck. "Boss, I just got off the phone with the head of security over at JND. He assured me that the building was conpletely locked down and ready for Sam when he gets there."

Troy nodded. "Thanks Sean. Any word from Andrew and the others?"

"Yes sir, they radioed in a few seconds ago. They found a spot in the wall where they could snake the camera through, but the walls between the offices are thick so they had to go in at a weird angle. Scott said he didn't know what exactly we'd be able to see, but its the best they can do."

Commander Holleran, Troy and the members of Team One moved closer to the command truck. Sean handed them a computer from inside the truck, the video from the snake cam on the monitor. "The top 5 floors are being renovated; security said that the only people allowed up there are the maintenance and construction workers. The problem is, all of those workers are present and counted for and have no idea who this guy is. Security sent over the tapes from those floors and the IDs of the people on the tapes who aren't workers. I was just about to run them through the system, see if I can get an ID on our guy..." Sean said, standing near the door of the truck.

Troy nodded and looked at Greg. Greg immediately understood the silent question and turned to Spike. "Spike, go with Sean. The two of you should be able to figure who the hell this guy is in no time."

Spike nodded and walked over to Sean. The two techies of the team went into the command truck. The remaining SRU officers and Commander Holleran all turned their attention to the computer screen and watched as the snake cam made its way into the room where the shooter was.

...

 _JND Tower_

The ride to the JND Tower was silent and filled with concerned glances from Wordy. Sam was oblivious to his friend and teammate in the driver's seat; his mind somewhere far, far away. Once they arrived, the head of JND security led them to the elevators while informing them that the building had been put on lockdown and all employees and visitors were accounted for. Wordy thanked the man then hopped in the elevator with Sam and rode up 35 floors to the roof.

Stepping out onto the roof, Sam quickly surveyed the surrounding area. He spotted Winsor Tower off to the east and moved over towards the edge to set up his shot. Wordy followed behind him and pulled some binoculars out of the bag he had flung over his shoulder. Wordy looked through the binoculars, searching the windows for the suspect. Locating the sniper, Wordy turned to Sam. "Second beam from the right, fourth window to the left."

Sam gave him a quick nod and quickly found the suspect in his scope. "Got him." Wordy gave him an acknowledging nod. Sam spoke into his mic. "Sarge, I have the solution."

 _"Copy that Sam. We're going to try and talk to this guy, but be prepared."_

Wordy watched as Sam sat unmoving in his position, his body visibly tense. He silently reached over and put a comforting arm on Sam's shoulder and he looked over at him. "Do you trust me?"

A confused look appeared on Sam's face. "Of course. Why?"

"So if I tell you something you'd believe me, right?"

Sam quirked an eyebrow in confusion but nodded anyway. "Yeah..."

"Good, so trust me when I say this—everything is going to be OK. Regardless of how this call and this shot play out, everything's going to be OK."

Sam locked eyes with Wordy for a moment then nodded. Wordy smiled and squeezed his shoulder. Sam returned Wordy's smile with a small smile of his own then went back to watching the suspect in his scope. He and Wordy could hear the negotiations going on over their mics and it was pretty easy to tell that their suspect would, unfortunately, not go down without a fight. Ed sent Sam a heads up and told him to get ready the same time the suspect started shooting again. Finger on the trigger, Sam listened as Greg started to call scorpio and prepared to shoot. However, before Sarge could finish the call, the sound of a bullet hitting flesh and a pain-filled shout came over the mics.

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 **Uh oh! Who got shot?!**

 **A late(r than usual) upload AND a cliff hanger? Am I an awful person?**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for the cliff hanger! I hope this early upload makes up for it! (:**

 ***Thanks for the correction missblueeyes63!***

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 _JND Tower_

For Wordy, time seemed to speed up and slow down on the rooftop. It seemed to slowly tick by, seconds lasting minutes, as he and Sam waited for Sarge to give the Scorpio call but then in the blink of an eye, a mere millisecond of time, everything changed.

"Sam!" He called as he watched his friend and teammate hit the ground, a bright red blood stain spreading over his left shoulder. Wordy made a move to get closer to Sam but a hail of bullets stopped him in his tracks. "Sam?"

"I'm good Wordy."

Wordy let out a humorless chuckle. "I think we need to reevaluate your definition of good, buddy."

Sam gave Wordy a small smile that did nothing to mask the obvious pain in his eyes. He was about to say something else when the screaming in his ear reminded him of the fact that the team was still connected through the mics and they had no idea what was going on.

 _"Sam! Wordy! Status!"_

 _"Sam, Wordy, what's your status?! Come on guys, talk to me; what's going on?!"_

Wordy made his way over to Sam, making sure to stay low, beneath the ledge of the roof and out of the sight of the sniper. Once he got to Sam's injured side, Wordy pulled out some gauze from the backpack he brought and started applying pressure to Sam's wound. Hearing the calls of his teammates in his ear and seeing the pained look on Sam's face, Wordy decided that he should be the one to answer.

 _"SAM! WORDY! WHAT'S YOUR STA-"_

"No harm! No harm Ed, but Sam's been hit."

Gasps and curses could be heard over the mics. Hoping to relieve his team of some of the stress and fear he heard in their voices, Sam finally spoke. "I'm good guys; it's not that bad."

 _"Sam! Good to hear your voice buddy!"_ The elation in Ed's voice was soon replaced with disbelief. _"Now tell me the truth; how bad is it?"_

"Left shoulder, just outside the vest, no exit wound" Sam said with a pained sigh. "Sarge, do we know who this guy is and how the hell he can shoot this far?!"

 _"Yeah Sam, we do. Spike?"_

 _"His name is Chris Barton, former US Army sniper, moved to Toronto from the states 2 years ago after getting back from his last tour in Iraq. Since being in Toronto he's been arrested several times for assault, DUIs, public intoxication , the list goes on."_

 _"Some of his arrests led to court-mandated therapy and psych evals." Sean's voice came through the mics. "All the psychiatrists he saw reached the same conclusion; PTSD. He was prescribed different medications and was signed up for therapy, but there are no reports in his file that show he's ever actually gone to his therapy sessions and his medical records indicate that he hasn't refilled his prescriptions in months."_

As the conversation went on Sam grew more and more quiet. Wordy could see the pain on Sam's face, pain not caused by the shot to his shoulder. Quietly, almost inaudibly, Sam asked "Does his file say if anything happened to him in Iraq to contribute to the PTSD?"

 _"No reports of anything out of the ordinary; he wasn't injured in any way, no one in his unit was injured and the majority of the time he wasn't anywhere near the front lines."_

"What about his family? Wife? Kids?"

 _"No kids and according to the court files, he filed for divorce from his wife shortly after returning home."_

"So we're dealing with a former soldier who, what, just can't deal with the realities of war and the aftermath?" Wordy asked as he changed out the gauze on Sam's still-bleeding wound.

 _"Sounds like it," Greg said with a sad sigh._

"Is there any way to talk this guy down?"

 _"His mind's made up Sam," Greg said with compassion in his voice. "He's not talking, but regardless of that, he's an active shooter, an active threat; he shot an officer Sam, he shot YOU." Greg sighed and spoke again. "I'm sending Ed up there Sam. He'll trade places with you and we'll get the paramedics to check you out..."_

"No."

 _"Excuse me?"_

"I said no. Sarge, there's a reason I was sent up here to take the shot and now things are about to get a whole lot more complicated because this building's compromised; we're going to have to go to a different building."

 _"Sam, buddy, you've been SHOT. The bullet is still in you and you want to move to another building and try to take the shot?"_

"Ed, somebody needs to get this guy! There's a building right across the street from this one. It's a little further away than this one, but it's roof has more coverage than this one so it should be perfect."

 _"OK, Sam, that's great and all but you've been shot and by the way your voice keeps sounding weaker and weaker I'm going to assume that you're still bleeding pretty badly. Am I wrong?"_

Sam took a deep calming breath, silently hating that his TL was so observant. "I'll be fine Ed."

 _"Sam, you're left handed! Can you even feel your arm anymore?!"_

"It doesn't matter! I can shoot with my right hand just as well as I can with my left!" Sam shouted. He took a deep breath to calm himself then spoke softly. "Please Ed, it'll take 10 minutes."

Sighs and murmurs could be heard over the mics before Sam got the OK. He and Wordy slowly and carefully made their way off of the roof, avoiding the incoming hail of bullets, back down the elevator and across the street to the COT Bank and Trust. Clearing security, the two of them made their way to the roof.

...

 _Winsor Plaza_

Spike exited the command truck and joined the rest of his team, Troy and Commander Holleran by the SUVs. As Sam and Wordy were making their way to the new building, Spike pulled up a map of the surrounding area on the laptop. "OK, the City of Toronto Bank and Trust is approximately 2,587 meters away. If Sam makes this shot, he'll have the longest sniper shot in history."

The others looked around at each other, surprised. They all knew that an SRU officer holding the record for longest shot would be impressive, but they all feared the possible consequences that came with the record-breaking shot.

* * *

 **Hope you enjoyed!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Here's the next chapter! Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 _COT Bank and Trust_

As Sam and Wordy made their way to the roof they heard the last ditch negotiation effort over the headset. Sam heard the hurt and the pain in Chris's voice and, unfortunately, he heard the sound of defeat and knew that there was no way Chris was planning on leaving this situation alive. His heart ached for the man whose life he was about to take yet, he was thankful that while his return to civilian life was not a seamless transition, he had friends who loved him and would help him through whatever would come his way.

Stepping out onto the roof, Sam and Wordy carefully made their way to the east side of the building, taking cover behind one of the roof's ventilation shafts. As Sam set up his rifle, Wordy changed the gauze on his shoulder wound again. The bleeding had slowed , a small mercy Wordy was very thankful for, but as he taped the new gauze into place, he could feel the small tremors wrecking Sam's body. He needed medical attention and he needed soon. Sam, noticing Wordy's careful ministrations were taking longer than normal, looked over at him and saw the worry reflected in his eyes. As much as he wanted to give Wordy a typical "Sam" answer and tell him that he was fine, he couldn't. Truth be told, Sam was really starting to feel the blood loss and the pain had reached a level where he could no longer block it out, even with all of his Special Forces training. He felt himself shaking and knew that his body was starting to go into shock; he needed to end this now.

Adjusting his rifle and changing his scope to compensate for the extra distance and wound to his shoulder, Sam expertly and efficiently found the subject. He took a deep breath and put his finger on the trigger. As he prepared himself for the shot, he couldn't help but think about the last time he made a shot like this; hot desert sand all around, him alone at his perch and, unknown to him, a group of insurgents slowly surrounding him. Shuddering at the memory, Sam snapped out of his thoughts and took another deep breath to calm himself. Wordy noticed that Sam had zoned out and was about to snap him out of it when he saw Sam shudder. "Sam, you OK?"

Sam swallowed hard and looked at Wordy. "Yeah, I'm good. I uh, just...zoned out for a minute."

"Hey, Sam. Look at me." Sam turned and looked at Wordy. Wordy saw the ill-concealed fear in his eyes and it confirmed his fears that Sam's "zoning out" was more than just that. "You're not back there, OK? You're not there and you're not alone. Nothing's going to happen."

Sam nodded. He turned his attention back to the job and quickly found the subject in his scope again. "Sarge, I have the solution."

 _A saddened side came over the headset. "Scorpio."_

Without hesitation, Sam squeezed the trigger and saw his bullet hit its target. "Subject neutralized," Wordy said as he looked through his binoculars. After confirming the hit, he put the binoculars down and turned his attention to Sam, his eyes never leaving his teammate.

 _"Good work Sam."_

Sam closed his eyes, turned away from his rifle and took a deep breath. Silence fell, both on the roof top and in the plaza, and seconds turned to minutes as everyone waited baited breath for Sam to say something. Finally, after what felt like forever, Sam took another deep breath and turned to face Wordy. Wordy was pleased to see that Sam's eyes were free of the fear and uncertainty that occupied them minutes ago. However, he knew Sam was a master at masking his emotions so Wordy knew he needed to tread lightly. "Sam? You OK?"

"Yeah, Wordy," Sam said with a small smile on his face. "I'm OK."

Wordy smiled, relieved that for the first time since Sam had been back, he actually believed Sam when he said he was OK. "Let's get out of here, huh? Get that arm looked at."

Sam nodded. Wordy helped him pack up his rifle, then helped him up. Dizzy and weak from blood loss, Sam staggered as he stood and Wordy had to help him off the roof. In the elevator on the way down, Wordy radioed in and alerted Sarge and the rest of the team that he and Sam were on the way. He also advised that they have EMS on the scene and ready to treat Sam. Greg confirmed that they were minutes away. Wordy helped Sam into the SUV and then, with police escort, they headed off back to the plaza.

...

 _Winsor Plaza_

As Team Two helped the unis clear the scene, the members of Team One along with Troy and Commander Holleran waited by the command truck for Sam and Wordy to return. The ambulance they already had at the scene was called away on an emergency before Sam was shot so a replacement one was in route, but the traffic in the area was slowing down its arrival.

Minutes after Wordy's update, their SUV arrived back at the plaza. Wordy got out, followed by Sam who exited the SUV at a much slower rate. When Sam got around to the front of the SUV where his team could finally see him they were shocked by what they saw; Sam was shockingly pale, paler than they imagined, shaking and the entire left side of his uniform shirt was covered in blood. Wordy pulled him to the back of the SUV closest to the team, opened the back door and made Sam sit. Wordy changed the gauze on Sam's wound again, because in the process of moving from the roof back to the plaza it had started bleeding again. The other members of Team One all rushed over to them. Seeing that Wordy's hands were already covered with dry blood, Ed took over holding the gauze on Sam's wound. Ed looked at Sam and although his face was blank of any emotions, he could see the pain in his eyes. "How ya doin' buddy?" Receiving no answer, he tried again. "Samo? You with me?"

Sam looked over at Ed. "Yeah, I'm with you," Sam's eyes dropped from Ed's to the wound on his shoulder. "And I've definitely seen better days."

Everyone cracked a small smile of relief. Any further conversation was cut off by the sirens of the ambulance pulling into the plaza. The paramedics grabbed their gear and rushed over to Sam. Sam saw them approach and cracked a small smile. "Hey Steve."

Steve smiled as he put his gear down. "Hey Sam. Want to tell me what happened?"

"One shot to the shoulder, just outside the vest, no exit wound. Seeing as I'm still alive, I don't think it hit anything major, but I've definitely lost a lot blood."

Nodding, Steve slipped into paramedic mode. He and his partner worked quickly; they got Sam's vest and uniform shirt off and then cut the sleeve off the short-sleeve shirt he wore underneath it. Steve traded places with Ed and removed the gauze to get a good look at Sam's wound while his partner John took Sam's blood pressure. Steve taped a pressure bandage on Sam's shoulder. "You're right, the bullet didn't hit anything major, but you did lose a lot of blood and the bullet's deep; you're going to need to go to the hospital to get that out."

Sam groaned. The last place he wanted to be was in a hospital. The second paramedic, John checked Sam's blood pressure one more time before grabbing a bag of fluids to start an IV. "OK Sam, your blood pressure's low so I'm going to start you on an IV of fluids. It won't replace the blood loss, but it'll boost your system some, stabilize your vitals." At Sam's nod, John quickly and expertly got the cannula into Sam's arm and hooked him up to the bag of fluids.

Steve brought the stretcher and he and John helped Sam out of the back of the SUV and onto the stretcher. Sam, of course, groaned and complained the entire time. Sam was moved into the ambulance, his team following him the entire way there. Once Sam was in the ambulance, Steve climbed in the back, followed by Wordy who would accompany him to the hospital. John closed the ambulance doors, hopped in the driver's seat and took off to the hospital. Leaving Team Two to clear the reset of the scene, the remaining members of Team One piled into the SUVs and followed the ambulance to St. Simons; they had just gotten _their_ Sam back, and they weren't going to let him go.

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 **Nearing the end now! Maybe one or two more chapters left!  
Next update will be next week sometime, maybe sooner!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry for the late upload.  
Little sleep + lots of school = not fun.**

* * *

 _St. Simons Hospital_

One hour later, all members of Team One (minus the one member who was the reason for the hospital visit), plus Commander Holleran and SIU Agent Brooks were gathered in the ER waiting room of St. Simon's Hospital. Since arriving, the only update the group had received was from Wordy when they first arrived and all he could tell them was "by the time the ambulance arrived the bleeding had completely stopped and the IV did what it was supposed to".

Everyone was growing anxious, and just as Ed was about to set off to find a nurse for an update, the ER doors opened and a doctor walked out, heading straight for them. "Family of Sam Braddock?"

"We're his team," Greg said as he and the others rose to their feet. "He was injured on a call."

The doctor nodded. "I'm Dr. Roberts; I treated Sam. The gunshot wound to Sam's shoulder, though it did cause him to lose a significant amount of blood, is actually pretty minor. Nothing major was hit and the bullet lodged itself in the muscle. We were able to remove the bullet and stitch everything up without any fuss, which is the good news."

The relieved faces that the SRU officers had at the news about their teammate were soon replaced with concerned ones. "What's the bad news?" Ed asked, stepping to the front of the group.

"He's lost a good amount of blood," Dr. Roberts informed. "We've been giving him transfusions since he arrived, but it's taking longer than usual for his body to bounce back. Tell me, has he been ill recently or mentioned anything about insomnia or trouble sleeping?"

The members of Team One all shared a saddened look with each other, knowing the reason for their teammate's insomnia. Greg rubbed his head and stepped forward to talk. "Sam is ex-Special Forces. He got back from a recent deployment a couple of months ago and he's been back with us for about a month. While he was deployed some bad stuff happened to him, very bad stuff. He had to get a psych eval before he rejoined the team and he passed; he doesn't have PTSD. However, since being back, he has had a few flashbacks and even more nightmares."

Dr. Roberts nodded his understanding. "I see. Well, Sam is on his last blood transfusion now and once that's complete we'll be keeping him for several more hours for monitoring so we can make sure his stats and vitals return to a normal range. Based on what you've just told me and my own assessments, I can tell Sam is exhausted, so we will strongly be encouraging him to rest for the remainder of his time here."

"Can we see him?" Spike asked. Hearing that his best friend would be OK was one thing, but he really needed to see it for himself.

"We'll be moving him to a room shortly; you can see him then." Dr. Roberts announced. He looked around at the group of people who obviously cared about his patient. "I do ask, however, that you keep your visit short. He needs his rest." At the nods of agreement, Dr. Roberts smiled. "I'll have a nurse come get you when he's settled."

Thanking the doctor, the SRU and SIU members watched as the doctor went back through the ER doors. Everyone was extremely relieved that Sam would be OK. When they all returned to their seats, Commander Holleran announced that he and Agent Brooks would be visiting with Sam first, wanting to get the interview done and out of the way. Greg and Ed both argued that the interview could wait, but Holleran stood firm in his decision. When Holleran left the room to make a phone call, Agent Brooks stepped forward and addressed the members of Team One.

"Just so you guys know, this interview is just a formality. I _HAVE_ to do it, but I've read the transcripts from the call and I know enough about what happened to know that he had to take the shot. I understand that, and I have to say, I'm extremely impressed that Constable Braddock was able to do so from such a far distance AND injured. You have quite a talented officer on your hands Sergeant Parker."

"Thank you," Greg said proudly. "He's definitely something else."

Agent Brooks smiled as the other members of Team One laughed in agreement. "I promise to make the interview as short as possible. I know it was a tough call this morning and you all really want to see him."

Team One's expressions of gratitude were cut off as Commander Holleran reentered the room, the same time a nurse came out to take them up to Sam's room. Having explained the situation to the nurse in the elevator, the members of Team One were left waiting in the third floor's waiting room while Commander Holleran and Agent Brooks were taken to Sam's room. True to his word, Agent Brooks kept the interview short and he, Commander Holleran and the nurse were back in the waiting room after only 15 minutes. Following the nurse down the hall to Sam's room, the members of Team One promised to keep their visit short. They entered Sam's room and they were all pleased to see him sitting up in bed and picking at the tape that kept his IV in place.

"Sam, leave that alone. It's there for a reason." Ed said with a smile. He led the other members of Team One into the room and around Sam's bed.

Sam shot Ed an annoyed look, but quickly replaced it with a small smile as he saw his team. "Hey guys."

"Samtastic!" Spike announced with a huge smile on his face as he came to stand next to Ed. "How 'ya feelin buddy?"

"Ready to get out of here."

Everyone smiled and chuckled slightly at the typical Sam answer. Some things with Sam would never change.

"Aside from that?" Greg asked, standing at the foot of Sam's bed.

"I'll be fine. Give me a couple days and I'll be good as new."

"I think it'll take a little longer than just a couple of days, Samo." Ed said, staring at the man in bed. "Now, maybe a couple of days full of sleep plus another couple of weeks in physical therapy..."

Sam gave a small smirk and rolled his eyes. "I talked to the doctor. I need a week, at the most, of PT. As for the whole sleep thing... I think that'll be better now too."

The members of Team One all shared a curious, hopeful glance with each other, then with Sam. "What do you mean Sam?" Jules asked, speaking for the group.

Sam looked at her and gave a small sigh. "I don't know, really, but something feels different. _I_ feel different."

"Different how?" Wordy asked from his spot next to Jules.

Sam was quiet for a moment and everyone could see the thoughtful expression on his face. "I don't know how to explain it, just...different. It's a good different though." Sam gave a relieved sigh and spoke again. "I feel like...me again. I know that's not really the best thing to say after I just shot and killed somebody and got shot myself, but it's true." Sam shrugged the shoulder that was not wrapped and bandaged.

The other members of Team One looked around at each other and smiled. The Sam they knew and loved, the one they feared they had lost after his last tour overseas, seemed to be back with them. They all knew that he had a ways to go until he was back to "normal", but seeing the light return to his eyes, they all silently pledged to help him get there and vowed to never let anything take that light away again.

* * *

 **Hope you enjoyed!**

 **I haven't decided if there's going to be an epilogue yet, but if there is, y'all will be the second to know. Not the first, cause that'd be me, but y'all could have probably figured that out.**


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